All Fall Down
by Rachel500
Summary: Wo Fat has come after the team, but has he really succeeded in breaking them apart? TAG to S1 finale and prequel for S2.


Hawaii Five-0 is somebody else's, probably CBS, and I freely admit that whoever's it is, I'm borrowing their show and they retain all rights, etc.

**Author's Note: **Gen/Team friendship fic. TAG to S1, episode 24/prequel to S2, episode 1. Spoilers for S1 and S2 episode 1.

**All Fall Down**

**Day 0**

Steve knows the mission is FUBAR. That he's failed. _Failed. _It had seemed so logical to him earlier; he was being framed for Laura Hills' murder and there was only one way to stop it – he had to get the Governor to confess. He hadn't called his team. He'd wanted to protect them; had thought he could handle facing the Governor alone and he'd been wrong. Her confession had shaken him; distracted him. And Steve knows it was Wo Fat who had tasered him; who had killed the Governor.

He sees Kono handing in her badge as he gets booked, shock written all over her face, and he can't go to her, can't ask why or comfort her – doesn't understand it.

He hangs onto one thing as he goes through the routine of being printed, photographed and stripped: Danny, who has promised Steve that he'd get him out of this, because it's a promise that Steve knows he'll keep. Danny knows him; Danny will know Steve didn't kill the Governor – won't he?

o-O-o

Danny's going to kill Steve.

It's the only thought in his head as he paces in the corridor of HPD. Despite Chin's words, Danny knows the status of Five-0 isn't cut and dried. Nobody's told him to get out and until someone does, he's going to push to see Steve.

_So he can kill him._

The Navy SEAL just couldn't stay low; let his team deal with it. No, he had to do some insane stunt guaranteed to put his ass in jail. OK, so Five-0 is a bit broken with Kono picked up by IA and Chin abandoning ship, but that is not the point. Danny should have known Steve would have done something risky and crazy and…_Steve_.

He leaves another voicemail for Rachel and checks his watch. He suspects she's gotten on the plane with Grace when he has failed to turn up. Rachel's used to Danny screwing up but it's not exactly how he wants their second time out to start, especially when Rachel's pregnant. There's a sour taste in his mouth because it's the first time ever he's let Grace down. He'd meant to get to the gate, explain, kiss them goodbye: instead he'd been watching Chin arrest Steve – and God knows what Chin is doing because Danny doesn't know, or maybe he does because he _knows_ Chin, but right at that moment he's too pissed at the sight of Chin _arresting _Steve to be anything other than pissed.

His cell vibrates. It's Steve who's apparently wrangled a phone call. Or maybe Chin helped him out with that – _maybe_. Danny cuts in before Steve can say anything more than 'hey.' "Don't say anything. I'm getting you a lawyer, and then we'll talk, OK?"

There's silence at the other end, a question unspoken. "You don't have to tell me you didn't do it, babe. I _know_." Danny knows Steve didn't kill the Governor no matter what the evidence is. He knows it because he knows Steve.

"OK." Steve says, relief colouring his tone no matter how hard he tries to hide it. "OK, then."

o-O-o

Kono can't believe the day's events. Everything swirls in her head like a surreal dream, one she's hoping she'll wake up from soon. Handing over her badge to IA isn't quite the slam of the wave sending her crashing out of her surfing career but it's close enough that her breath catches and her heart pounds in remembered pain.

She takes refuge in the bathroom to pull herself together again; get her balance back. She still can't believe she'd seen Steve getting booked but then the last time she'd set eyes on him he'd been running from HPD after being framed for Laura Hills' murder.

She takes a deep breath and washes her face. They'll need her back at Five-0 to help them break down the HPD evidence and get Steve released. She's suspended but that doesn't mean she can't help. OK, it means that she shouldn't be anywhere near Five-0 headquarters as she no longer has security clearance but Danny and Chin know the truth; they'll let her help.

She _needs_ to help.

Her jaw is set in a tense line when she exits the bathroom. She spots Danny further down the corridor, he's on the phone, but his body language says it's Steve. She's about to make for him when Chin's suddenly beside her. He signals for her to follow him and she does, wondering why they're headed in the opposite direction to their team-mate and friend.

o-O-o

Chin grabs Kono before she can reach Danny. He needs to talk to her first and explain. He hustles her into an empty room and frowns when he takes in her lack of badge and gun.

"Where's your badge?"

"What's going on?"

They speak at the same time and both stare a little at the other in shock. Chin folds his arms over his chest and a raised eyebrow indicates Kono should speak first. Her news sucks the air out of the room and Chin slumps to sit on the table. He can't believe she's suspended.

"Cuz?" Kono prompts impatiently.

It's Chin's turn to fill her in. Her eyes widen with shock over the Governor's death and Steve's arrest for it; over the truth that Five-0 is breaking apart. She slumps to sit beside him.

Chin doesn't know if his strategy will work, if being with HPD will mean he can help Steve more than if he'd remained with Five-0. That he had to arrest Steve, had to turn Danny away to make his return to HPD believable doesn't help the nauseous feeling in his gut.

Kono shifts and the warmth of her shoulder against his is a boon "You did the right thing."

Her world has turned upside down because she saved his life and she's comforting him?

Chin nudges her back. "So did you."

**Day 1 **

Steve lies on the cot and stares at the ceiling. He's in trouble. He doesn't need the fancy lawyer Danny has found to tell him that. He had broken into the Governor's house; he had been found with a recently fired weapon and a dead body. It doesn't look good. But it's not his own situation that swirls in his head.

Kono's in trouble with IA and guilt sits heavily in his belly because it's his fault and he can't help her, can barely help himself. He knows Chin has probably gone back to HPD to help even though he'd arrested Steve and has been absent since. Steve's just thankful Danny's standing by him openly even if his partner is furious at him. It had been Danny who had insisted that Steve had been treated for the taser burn and bruising he'd sustained; had badgered HPD into documenting the injuries.

He looks around the cell. It's solid if small. Two guards are posted; one just to the right of the bars but too far away to grab, another outside the corridor. They work together whenever they have to move him or bring him food. Steve has already calculated three different non-lethal ways to take them out. He estimates that he could be out of HPD in twelve minutes from engagement to exit.

Steve won't escape though. Not yet. If Wo Fat thinks he's safe, it will give Danny more time to find the son-of-a-bitch, and Wo Fat will only think he's safe if Steve's in jail. There's a bail hearing set for the afternoon and his lawyer was clear that she expects to lose that battle. He'll be remanded to custody and taken to the State prison, probably placed in solitary confinement. All of which means his opportunities for escape will become extremely limited. Limited, Steve muses idly, but not impossible.

o-O-o

Danny tracks Kono down to the beach. She's alone, riding a wave. He waits as patiently as he can on the beach, thinking about Grace and Rachel. Rachel has forgiven him already and told him to stay as long as he needs to in Hawaii, knows he needs to be there for his partner. He still feels like he's failing a test he's already failed once before.

Kono comes out of the ocean, wet and furious. She tells him about her suspension in hard words that make Danny feel guilty he hasn't checked on her before. Danny reassures Kono; they'll deal with her suspension as soon as they're up and running again. They had full immunity and means, and stealing ten million dollars to save Chin's life not to mention the real estate of central Honolulu has to fall under that. He tells her about Steve, as much as he can since the lawyer wouldn't let him sit in as Danny isn't protected by the same privilege as she is, and Danny had only managed to bully HPD into allowing him a brief visit with his partner.

She doesn't look surprised when Danny tells her Chin is ducking his calls. If Chin is trying to work it from the inside, Danny knows it's a valid move; Chin has to distance himself from Five-0. Of course, it could just be Chin distancing himself, but Danny remembers Chin sitting beside him in a bar and talking about loyalty. He has to hang onto that, Danny thinks tiredly, has to hang onto Chin being on their side since Five-0 headquarters are being ripped apart and nobody is speaking to Danny.

His cell vibrates reminding him he's due in court; Steve's bail hearing. Kono hugs him, but her rookie face can't hide her fear that they're not going to get through this and Danny can't find the words to tell her they will.

o-O-o

Kono waves Danny goodbye and wants nothing more than to follow him to Steve's bail hearing and stand beside him. But both Chin and Danny separately have told her to steer clear. They want to protect her from any fallout from Steve's arrest especially since she's facing an IA investigation. She knows they're right but she feels that they're wrong too.

All she knows for certain is that she doesn't want protecting and she's desperate to do something. She's half-way to her car to follow Danny to the bail hearing when Jenna calls her.

They meet at Kamekona's shave ice stand, get cones and take a seat at one of the wooden picnic tables. They commiserate over Five-0's sudden fall from grace but thankfully for Kono's sanity don't go anywhere near the topic of her IA investigation.

They go over Steve's arrest and Kono fills Jenna in when she reveals she's only exchanged texts with Danny and doesn't know what went down exactly. They agree they need to find Wo Fat. They get stuck on how they're going to do that without access to Five-0's headquarters, Kono suspended and the team in disarray.

Both of them stir the slush that is the remainder of their snow cones. Their phones beep in unison. It's Danny: Steve's denied bail and is on his way to Halawa.

Jenna looks as devastated as Kono feels. She doesn't protest when Jenna makes her excuses and leaves.

Kamekona slides into the empty space and pushes a new shave ice cone at Kono. His face is a picture of sympathy as he tells her it's on the house.

o-O-o

Chin's not in the court room to hear Steve denied bail. He's not part of the escort to the prison. He stays out of the way, telling himself he needs to look as though he has abandoned Steve if he's to help him. He catches sight of Danny at the roadside, watching the disappearing transport until it's gone; watches Danny bow his head wearily. Chin wishes he could talk to him but he needs Danny pissed at him for his sudden return to HPD to be believable to the other cops.

He's dismayed then a few hours later when the Chief of Police takes him off the McGarrett case, citing conflict of interest as Chin is a former colleague, personal friend. Chin tries to argue anyway. "You know he didn't do it, Chief."

Makaha sighs. "I want to believe that McGarrett didn't do it, but the evidence says otherwise."

"Sometimes the evidence can say one thing but the truth is another." Chin points out. He'd been run out of the HPD and Meka Hanamoa had been branded a dirty cop on his death on the basis of evidence before the truth was told.

"Maybe," Makaha says, "but don't think I don't know why you came back to HPD. Stay away from this case, Lieutenant."

It's a warning. A warning Chin has every intention of ignoring.

**Day 2**

Halawa State Prison isn't an unknown. Steve's visited a few times since Five-0 was formed and he knows the layout; generally knows the set-up; knows they've implemented changes to the procedures they use on him because he knows. He estimates twenty-four hours to identify the guard shift pattern and an exit strategy; twenty-four hours more to confirm it. Then it's just a matter of putting whatever plan he comes up with into action.

His cell isn't too different from the one at HPD. He takes note of everything he can use; everything that can be turned into a weapon. He wonders idly why Victor Hesse hasn't escaped already because he knows Hesse will have made the same assessment as Steve. He ignores the guard who treats him with friendly respect the same way he ignores the rest that treat him with icy disdain. He does what he's been trained to do in capture situations; he sets up a series of physical and mental exercises and begins them.

His focus is internal. He can't help Kono's situation until Five-0 is back on its feet (and he ignores his guilt at her situation, it's worth than useless to him right now). He thinks Chin will be trying to help him but he has to help himself too. He maps out all the evidence against him and his defence in his head before he meets with his lawyer.

Steve feels shaken when his lawyer tells him Danny has been taken in for questioning under suspicion of being an accessory. It doesn't matter that Steve knows it's not true; he's been framed and he can't help but think that Danny will be too. For the first time, Steve begins to worry.

o-O-o

Danny is pissed off.

He sits in the interrogation room uncaring that there's probably an audience on the other side of the two-way with popcorn. He denies all prior knowledge of Steve's actions in regards to the Governor. He draws them a map of the route that he'd taken looking for Steve, and points out that he wouldn't have been looking for his partner if he'd known what Steve had planned.

At the end of the interview the Chief comes in, sombre and almost apologetic. Five-0 is disbanded and HPD is under no contractual obligation to transfer him back. It's a shock. It's not that Danny hasn't seen the writing on the wall about Five-0's future, and it's not that he _wants_ to return to HPD, (he might have even dreamed about telling them to stick their job although he wouldn't have actually done it), but he hadn't anticipated not returning because without his badge he's pretty limited in how he can help Steve.

But they have fired him and Danny hands over his badge without a word. He takes a moment to hope that Chin can help Steve. Danny holds his head up high as he walks out. He thanks God the Camaro is his private vehicle, albeit paid for up until that moment with the generous car allowance he got from his job, and drives back to his apartment.

Rachel calls him but he can't talk to her and ignores it. Jenna texts him wanting to meet and he ignores that. He ignores everyone and everything because all he's ever wanted to be is a cop; all he's ever been good at is being a cop. But he's not a cop anymore and it hurts.

o-O-o

Kono spends the day surfing. The ocean calms her. She swims and surfs until her muscles feel like jelly. She sits on the sand and watches the waves.

She can't help Steve. The truth of that hurts. But without her badge she can't do anything to find Wo Fat or look into the evidence that's keeping Steve behind bars. Jenna has what they can do under control and there had been a quiet desperation in the CIA analyst's voice the last time they'd spoken that makes Kono believe Jenna needs the distraction of the work more.

She can't help Chin help Steve. He's consolidating his position within HPD and associating with her – a cop under investigation – only endangers that. He won't abandon her any more than she had abandoned him but it makes sense that she keeps her distance.

She can't help Danny help Steve either. She tries hard not to resent that his focus is on Steve and not on her but Steve's situation has primacy. She's only facing an IA investigation and has her freedom; Steve is facing a murder charge and is in prison. And Danny's right; if they get Steve cleared and Five-0 back in business, then they can help her.

It's a big if. What she can do, Kono determines briskly, is protect the guys in the interim. She knows normally they'd be lined up behind her just as she, Danny and Chin had lined up behind Steve when they'd thought their theft of the money had been discovered after the tsunami warning. But they can't line up with her and if someone does need to take the fall, Kono will take it.

She'd saved Chin's life with that money. She'd do it again in a heartbeat. So she'll handle the IA investigation. She'll keep the guys out of it. It's a plan.

o-O-o

Chin asks to close up Five-0 headquarters personally once forensics and the investigating team are done. He takes care to put back pictures on walls; to place Danny's photo of Grace back on his desk before he covers everything with dust sheets and seals the space.

When he arrives back at HPD he can't believe what he hears: Danny's been interrogated under suspicion of being an accessory. As a result, or maybe just because HPD can, Danny's transfer back hasn't been approved and he's out of a job. Chin's shocked. He thought Danny would be transferred back to Homicide, kicking and screaming and not happy, but transferred back. For a long moment Chin considers giving up his own badge in protest but he knows he's the only one with access to the evidence to help Steve and Kono from the inside.

With that in mind, he hunts out a copy of the preliminary evidence report on the Governor's murder. Chin reads it avidly cover to cover, hoping for something but it's bad news. Steve was holding the gun that killed the Governor; there was gunshot residue on his clothes; and worse, there's no video feed of anyone else entering or exiting the mansion.

Chin wants his team desperately. He wants to be standing back in Five-0 headquarters around the tech table debating the report with them. Because he can't see how the report helps Steve at all.

**Day 3**

As soon as his lawyer gets into the room, Steve demands to know what happened with Danny. His lawyer calmly tells him that Danny will be visiting him the next day once the application for visitation is approved and refuses to answer anything further noting it's up to Danny what he shares.

Steve swallows his frustration, suddenly all too aware of his lack of freedom; he can't even make a phone call. The loss settles on his skin like an itch. But he's been trained to ignore it and he pushes it aside ruthlessly, focuses on going over the evidence again. His lawyer thinks they have a shot at arguing reasonable doubt.

Apparently, the Lieutenant Governor wants to push for an early trial date. His lawyer wants to push for the Feds to take over the investigation as it's really their jurisdiction. Steve doesn't care; he knows one way or another, the State of Hawaii versus Steve McGarrett will never get to court.

When he gets back to his cell, he reviews his strategy. He wants to talk to Danny so badly it's almost a physical pain. He knows Danny will be sat in a visitor's chair in twenty-four hours but it feels too long to wait. But Steve _has_ to wait because he can't escape any sooner; he needs twenty-four hours to confirm the guard shift pattern and establish his exit route. Which means he might as well wait for Danny's visit.

He does another punishing set of exercises; tries to forget the nagging anxiety in his gut.

o-O-o

Danny thinks he's owed a day to wallow in his new status as a former cop. HPD disagree.

He's dragged back into interrogation where they go over the same ground as the day before. He finally snaps and tells them to charge him if they're that convinced they have a case. They let him go. They all know they don't have anything and he's not about to give them a confession because he didn't do anything and neither did Steve. Well, OK, Steve had broken into the Governor's residence (twice) and assaulted the security guards but right at that moment Danny doesn't much care about specifics.

He catches sight of Chin disappearing around a corridor bend as he leaves and gives chase but Chin knows the HPD like the back of his hand and Danny loses him. He tells himself Chin is trying to work this from the inside; talking with Danny in any friendly way in sight of HPD will lose him ground especially since Danny is currently officially a person of interest but it doesn't lessen the hurt or annoyance at Chin's avoidance of him.

He thinks about talking to Kono but he doesn't want to add more bad news to her load; how's he meant to help her if he's out a job? Instead he heads to Jenna's. The news isn't good: no Wo Fat anywhere, and without access to the evidence from the Governor's murder, there's only so much Jenna can do to help Steve.

Danny tries to cheer himself up, but his call with Grace only serves to remind him that she's miles away and talking with Rachel just makes him feel guilty for not being there. He doesn't tell her he's lost his job.

He buys a six pack of Longboards and heads back to his apartment to get drunk.

o-O-o

Kono hears about Danny's unemployment from Chin. She debates calling but if Danny wanted to talk to her she knows he would have already called.

She fields a supportive call from Charlie, another from her Mom. She feels shame every time she speaks to someone about the investigation. She is guilty. She did it for the best of reasons but she can't tell them and not telling them and not lying to them at the same time is wearing on her control.

She spends another day on the beach and tries not to feel like she's shirking her duty to her team-mates; tries hard not to feel like they're shirking their duty to her.

Kamekona gives her another shave ice on the house when she stops by. She asks if he's heard anything on the street but he shakes his head.

"It's quiet," he says sombrely, "too quiet if you get my meaning." He leaves to deal with a paying customer and Kono wanders away to a table.

She feels the restless urge to do something. Maybe she should speak to Jenna again. See whether or not there's some lead she has that Kono can follow up. Any lead.

Her cell rings and she picks up. It's IA. They want her in for questioning the next day.

o-O-o

Chin wants to speak to Danny badly. He wants to sit beside him at a bar and buy him a beer and apologise for avoiding him. He picks his cell up more times than he wants to recall to do just that; say sorry. But his gut tells him to wait it out; that he can do more to make sure Danny gets reinstated, for Five-0 to get resurrected, if he stays where he is even if he hates it.

He has a case and he's diligently working through it. The cop he's working with is nice enough, competent enough but they aren't Danny or Kono or Steve and Chin misses them in the field. He misses the synchronicity of working with them; the shorthand they've worked out; the way they know how they're going to split the work.

In between doing his job, he keeps an eye on Steve's case but there are no new developments, nothing that helps. Instead, he tries tracking down as much as he can about Wo Fat and sends it onto Jenna. She seems distracted; adrift. His conscience stirs because he's kind of forgotten about her with Steve being arrested and Kono being investigated. She was too new to the team for him to consider her _ohana_ in the way he does with the others but he feels he should have checked on her before. He asks her how she's holding up and she tells him she's fine. She's lying and they both know it. He ends the call and determines that he needs to do better.

He can't speak with Danny, not yet, but he goes to see Kono in the evening to check on her. Kono tells him IA will be questioning her the next day and tells him that Chin needs to keep away from her. He points out that he'd said the same to her once; she hadn't stayed away and neither would he.

**Day 4**

Steve can hardly wait to see Danny; he needs to make sure he's OK; that the team is OK. It's not good how his worry preys on his mind. It's splitting his focus. It's undermining every technique he learned in training about getting through prison time.

But visiting hours come and go and no Danny.

Something's wrong. Something has to be wrong or Danny would be there. Maybe Danny's hurt. Or something happened with Grace or Chin or Kono or Rachel – because that would be the only other reason why there's no Danny.

Steve needs out. He needs out _yesterday_. Only the guards aren't where they're supposed to be. They've changed the pattern. The exit strategy he'd planned is no longer valid. His escape is no longer guaranteed if he goes forward. He's going to have to reassess for a few days and see if they change the pattern back again. His new plan means that he'll have to stay in prison for at least another three days; four at the outside. Too long when Steve doesn't know what's happened.

He tries to refocus and he does, but he knows he has to do better; he has to shut himself down and stop thinking about the people he cares about if he's going to get through this.

o-O-o

Danny yells at anybody who will listen about his approval to visit Steve being placed on hold. He yells at people who don't want to listen. He leaves a strongly worded voicemail for Chin asking him to sort it out even if it's the only thing Chin does for them.

Kono tries to calm him down when Danny calls her but there's too much tension in her own voice and when Danny asks, she admits that she's been pulled in for questioning with IA. Danny stumbles in his words but tries to comfort her.

Finally, his lawyer manages to get through to someone and Danny's confirmed as cleared by HPD and approved to visit his friend. But visiting hours are already over and Danny has no way of letting Steve know. Danny's frustrated: it's rapidly becoming his new state of being.

Danny calls Rachel. There's a doctor's appointment he's missed –blood work for official confirmation of the pregnancy and a pre-natal check-up. They talk for a little while until Rachel asks Danny how long he thinks he'll need to stay in Hawaii. He has no idea and he blurts that out without thinking. The silence at the other end is telling.

"It's not that I don't want to be with you, Rachel; you, Grace and the baby." Danny begins awkwardly, trying to explain. "It's just…"

"I'm not complaining," Rachel says hurriedly, "but it would be nice to know you're going to be here before our youngest goes to college." She jokes. He hopes she's joking.

"I will be there soon, I promise." Danny says, and tries not to feel like he's lying.

Maybe, Danny considers tiredly, it's time he told Steve. At least then his plan to go back to New Jersey, to be a family again with Rachel, Grace and the new baby, might feel real.

o-O-o

Kono feels bad when she hangs up on Danny. It's not that she doesn't appreciate his need to vent to someone about not being able to visit Steve but she's had a hell of a day herself.

The memory of the four hours she'd been questioned by IA shudders through her.

She heads out to a small beach in the middle of nowhere. She sits on the beach, wind in her hair, salt on her lips and the sound of the waves filling her head.

IA's questions had been pointed; where had she been, what had she been doing, why does a witness place her at the scene; how did money from the locker end up near to where Hesse had been arrested? Kono had evaded; she doesn't know exactly where she was at that moment, she'd been involved with a hostage situation with her cousin at the centre of it, she has no idea why a witness places her at the scene; she doesn't know why the burned money ended up close to where she and Steve McGarrett had apprehended Victor Hesse.

It's the strategy she'd agreed with Chin. IA only has the witness; nothing else places Kono there. Steve had been the one to actually break in and get the money. All Kono has to do is hang tight and claim ignorance. After all, as she'd said to IA, if she had been involved with stealing from the Asset Forfeiture locker, wouldn't she have guaranteed herself an alibi?

But for all her bravado, she doesn't think IA are going to drop it. The Lieutenant Governor is making speeches about corruption in the force. She has a horrible feeling that the investigation isn't going to go away.

She's scared even if she doesn't want to admit it.

o-O-o

Chin waits for Kono to call him but he hears the whispers in HPD; hears that IA aren't satisfied with what she's told them especially with the Lieutenant Governor coming down hard on the department for failing to recognise Steve was a loose cannon.

Kono's told him that she can take care of this herself. She doesn't need either Chin or Danny riding to her rescue when all IA have is one old woman. She's told him to focus on Steve.

Chin listens to Danny's irate voicemail again and is thankful that the lawyer was able to get Danny cleared and his approval through. Chin could visit and tell Steve about the delay but he knows he's being watched and he doesn't want to give them the satisfaction. He calls Jenna instead to check up on her.

She sounds stronger; more determined. She notes that she's done as much as she can to find Wo Fat but there's nothing. Her best bet is to continue to look through the contents of McGarrett's toolbox; to focus on the evidence there. He reluctantly agrees and asks her to send him copies.

He stares at the information all night but nothing jumps to mind. He wishes John McGarrett had trusted him; hopes Steve still will when this is all over.

**Day 5**

When they tell him he has a visitor, Steve has to stop himself from running there. It's only when he sees Danny already seated that he breathes a sigh of relief and slides into his own plastic chair. He picks up the phone.

Steve's eyes run over Danny. His partner's tired; circles under his eyes. Faint white lines of tension bracket his mouth and eyes. But he looks like his usual self otherwise; tie, shirt and pants all smart and professional. There's no sign of an injury that would have prevented Danny from visiting him. He tries hard not to feel hurt but Danny must guess something because he immediately explains about the approval delay and the tension in Steve's gut eases. He asks for an update on the case and isn't surprised with the lack of news on Wo Fat. His heart sinks when Danny tells him about Kono's interrogation by IA.

Danny rubs his forehead as though he has a tension headache. "Jenna says she'll come and visit…"

"I don't want visitors." Steve blurts out. He doesn't plan on staying that long, not that he can tell Danny that.

Danny frowns. "OK, I'm not going to take that personally seeing as _I_ am a visitor, Steve."

"You're my partner," Steve replies easily, "you're not a visitor."

o-O-o

Danny gets that Steve's antsy about visitors. If he was on the other side of the bullet-proof glass he'd probably feel the same. He tries not to feel honoured that he's the exception especially because it makes what he does next harder.

It doesn't take long to tell Steve: Rachel has left Stan; she's pregnant with Danny's baby; she's gone back to New Jersey with Grace. He knows the minute Steve puts it together because there's flash in his eyes before he drops them to the desk.

"Hey, hey." Danny's hand is reaching out automatically before he remembers the glass separating them. "I'm not going anywhere." But the 'not yet' hangs between them because Danny knows Steve knows that Danny will follow Grace and the new baby, if not today, if not tomorrow, soon.

"Maybe you should leave." Steve says, his eyes snapping up at him.

Danny glowers at him. "Did I or did I not say that I was going to get you out of this? And OK, maybe that isn't going so well right now but that's because the last few days haven't been easy what with my partner in prison, Chin dodging me like I'm the bogeyman, Kono tied up with IA, and let's not forget the whole losing my job thing!" His free hand slices through the air, punctuating every point.

Steve's eyes widen with horror as the last remark registers. "Danny…"

Danny waves off his concern, runs a hand through his hair as he shifts in his seat. "Just...temporary, right? Until we sort out this mess." He changes the subject back to Wo Fat. It's a much safer topic.

A few minutes later, the visit is over but Steve pauses after they say goodbye. "No matter what they say, you're still a cop, Danno." Steve hangs up, walks away.

Danny sets the phone down with a clatter. Steve thinks he's still a cop. Maybe it's time Danny started acting like one.

o-O-o

Kono meets Danny at his apartment along with Kamekona and Jenna.

She's not surprised to find Danny's visit with Steve has renewed Danny somehow. He tells them how Steve is and sums up what they have to date which is not a lot. He asks for their input.

Kamekona has nothing but he has his ear to the ground and will let them know if there's any chatter in the criminal underground. It's not unreasonable to assume that someone knows something about Wo Fat's whereabouts.

Jenna admits she's hit a dead end with finding Wo Fat through her intelligence contacts. She's had limited access to the evidence in Steve's case and has nothing there either. She admits that she's returned to the toolbox evidence as a way forward; the evidence they've all been looking at for weeks without too much progress until Steve had hit on the right desk for the right key – and look at where that had led.

Kono fills them in on her interrogation by IA. They agree there's nothing much she can do but fight her own battle. She tries hard not to feel useless.

As she leaves Danny catches her, gives her a hug, and tells her that it might feel like it but she's not alone. His words mean a lot but they're hard to hold onto when she gets back to her apartment and another empty evening stretching out ahead of her.

o-O-o

Chin's busy during the day tracking down the murderer in the case he'd been given. He has to keep yanking his thoughts back to the job; has to stop himself from worrying about Kono, about Steve, about Danny. Finally they catch the guy and he hands him over to booking without the usual satisfaction of a job well done. He heads to do the paperwork feeling tired to his bone in a way that he never had at Five-0.

Maybe Chin considers he should reconnect with Danny and leave HPD. He's seen the evidence reports; he's looked after closing up Five-0; he's tried finding Wo Fat using HPD sources without success. He hasn't been able to help Steve as much as he had thought he would if he ensured he kept his badge. If all they have left to go on is the toolbox evidence then they would be better working together rather than apart. Time is a factor; Chin can't believe Wo Fat will leave Steve alive to face trial.

He can't do anything for his cousin either. The IA investigation is ongoing and nobody is going to listen to Chin with his past.

When he walks through the bullpen to his office, the place is abuzz. The Governor's funeral is scheduled for the day after tomorrow. All officers on duty will be expected to show up in uniform to accord her with honours. Chin's jaw tightens at that. The Governor was corrupt; she deserves no honours.

But…but this is an opportunity, Chin realises. One of the first things he'd learned in Homicide was to go to the victim's funeral because a lot of the time the murderer would be there to gloat or because they were remorseful. Chin doesn't think Wo Fat will show for either reason but maybe one of his people would. It's a slim hope but it's all Chin has.

**Day 6**

Steve is outside for his mandated exercise hour. He jogs around the small space and maps out the distances between the walls; the heights; the guards. He's alone. There's no other inmate allowed out with him although if someone wanted him to have an accident, it's the perfect time. He wonders how many days he's got left before Wo Fat sends someone.

Not long, Steve thinks. Wo Fat will want Steve dead before a trial so Steve will be considered guilty and Wo Fat will be completely off the hook. Steve needs to escape before that happens. He hasn't shared his theory with Danny…he doesn't want to give him something else to worry about on top of Kono, Chin and everything Steve has already dumped on him.

_Danny._ His partner's news flits through his head again. He doesn't think about Danny not being a cop anymore because it makes Steve furious in the same way Kono's suspension does, and instead thinks about the personal news his partner had shared. Steve's concerned Danny's reconciliation with Rachel is not the second chance Danny hopes it is. But Steve tries to be happy for him because he wants Danny to be happy.

He wants Danny happy _in Hawaii_ but Danny has always been clear that he follows Grace. Steve's humbled that Danny isn't already in New Jersey; has stayed to help Steve. He's a one in a million kind of a friend, just like Five-0 is a one in a million kind of a team; more than a team, _ohana_. He'll get Five-0 back once Wo Fat is put down, he tells himself, and ignores the painful truth that he will lose Danny either way.

o-O-o

Danny needs more resources. Jenna's access to data is limited despite all her Langley connections. Kamekona hasn't heard anything on the street. Kono is as badge-less as Danny. Danny can't wait for Chin to reveal his hand because the possibility of Wo Fat getting to Steve in the prison increases every day Steve is there.

He calls Lieutenant Catherine Rollins. Steve's friend, maybe girlfriend, (Steve has never explained their relationship beyond the obvious), points him in the direction of Lieutenant Commander Joe White, Steve's mentor and trainer. He takes a moment to wonder if he should rant at the guy for clearly making Steve a crazy person but he's too aware that they have more pressing concerns.

White listens to Danny, listens to the whole sorry tale; tells him he's done the right thing calling him and will be there the next morning; can Danny pick him up from Pearl?

Danny can pick him up from Pearl? Danny will pick him up from Africa if it means he has help. He puts the phone down and praises God for a moment, hands together, eyes skyward. Finally something is going right.

Which, of course, is when everything else goes wrong.

He ends his call with Rachel and sits down heavily on the sofa bed. The baby's Stan's; Rachel's going back to him; he is her husband not Danny after all. He wants to blame her for the mess they've made, but he knew what he was doing when he slept with her. The loss of the baby he thought was his makes his heart ache; the loss of his second chance with Rachel and Grace is devastating.

The good news is that Rachel's bringing Grace back to Hawaii and soon he'll get to hug his daughter. He holds onto that.

o-O-o

Kono checks her phone. Chin had left her three messages and two texts all asking her to call him. She knows he's worried because IA dragged her in for another interrogation session. _She's_ worried because IA dragged her in for another interrogation session.

She slides a hand through her hair and her fingers catch on tangles where the wind and the sea have conspired to tie knots. She'd spent a few hours on the waves trying to recapture her calm, trying to recapture her resolve that she can do this alone.

It hasn't worked.

Her head still rings with IA's questions and with her answers. She's said nothing different but she knows she must by now sound rehearsed; deceptive. She wonders if that will change anything. She's heard rumours that a new Captain is being appointed to head IA and spearhead the Lieutenant Governor's crack-down on corruption.

Her phone rings again. She ignores it. She feels so tired and all she wants to do is pull the covers up over her head and pretend the world doesn't exist.

o-O-o

Chin sighs as Kono doesn't pick up. Again. He doesn't leave another message but he figures he'll just go and see her. IA had brought her in again. It's unusual. It means they're serious; that they're going after her badge.

Not surprising with the noises that the Lieutenant Governor has been making. The latest is that he's determined that Steve's trial will happen sooner rather than later. They're running out of time.

Chin stops by Kamekona's shave ice stand on his way to Kono's and runs into Jenna as she's leaving.

"You OK?" He asks.

"Just…" she tries to smile but her face won't quite follow the command, "this has been my whole life for so long and to be so close and…" she shakes her head and looks away into the distance, looks lost, "I just don't want anyone else to get hurt."

"We'll get him." Chin says quietly but with a fierce determination because they will; Wo Fat might have won a couple of battles but he hasn't won the war.

Jenna smiles at him sadly and leaves. Chin moves on and heads up to Kamekona at the window. They exchange greetings and Chin orders a shave ice. He won't eat it but it serves as cover as he asks if Kamekona's heard anything.

"My ears are wide open," the big guy shakes his bald head, "but I'm not hearing anything." He pauses. "Maybe it's time you came in from the cold, brah."

Chin nods. He doesn't disagree. He thinks of the funeral he'll attend in the morning. "Tomorrow." He smiles to soften his tone. "I have a cousin to check on tonight."

**Day 7**

Today is the day.

When Steve gets his exercise hour, he'll make a break for it then. There's space in the guard coverage; he's reasonably confident he can get over the wall without getting shot; he knows the proximity to the employee car park. He can hotwire a car. He estimates fourteen minutes from engagement to exit.

He needs out badly. He has to start fixing things. He has to be free to hunt down Wo Fat. Finding him is his only chance at clearing his name; he's reasonably certain Wo Fat will want to brag about his achievement in killing the Governor and framing Steve. And it's not just him he's fighting for. If they can't get Five-0 back, Kono might end up in a cell. Danny won't leave until Steve is either gone too deep underground for Danny to find him or cleared, and Danny deserves to be with his family not staying somewhere just to help Steve. And Chin...maybe Chin will be OK back at HPD; maybe he won't. Steve would rather Chin didn't have to find out. No, he needs out if he's going to make things right for his team.

Steve hears one of the guards talking: the late Governor's funeral is being held today. He still hasn't reconciled the Pat Jameson who supported Five-0 so strongly with the Pat Jameson who had confessed she was in bed with Wo Fat. They'll bury her in the ground with honours. It's wrong.

So maybe it's right that today's the day he escapes. If only because HPD will be distracted with policing a State funeral.

o-O-o

Danny is up bright and early. He listens to the news, and grimaces at the reminder that the Governor's funeral is scheduled today. The good thing about losing his job is that he doesn't have to be there. He's not sure he'd be able to stand the hypocrisy of pretending she was a good woman. He heads for the shower feeling buoyed by the thought.

His phone has five messages on it when he gets out the bathroom and starts to dress: Jenna has new intelligence that Wo Fat is on the island which means the bastard is still in reach if they can find him; Kono tells him IA have questioned her again and he gets the frustration in her tersely worded message; Chin – finally – has texted to ask for a meet at Five-0 headquarters; Joe White sends confirmation of his plane's arrival time. Grace has texted him the words 'I love u Danno;' he sends her hugs and kisses and thanks God again she's coming home.

Home. He pauses in buttoning up his shirt. He's not certain but it may be the first time he's thought of Hawaii as home. He's resisted the notion ever since he moved, following his Grace. He's called it a pineapple-infested hellhole. He's complained about the beach, the sand, the surf, the surfers. He's complained because it's not New Jersey. But with Rachel having a baby with Stan, there is no doubt in Danny's mind that he'll be staying in Hawaii for a long while.

If there is one thing that makes Hawaii home for him, it's Five-0. Not just the job but the people. He's determined he's going to get them back; he has to. His hand hovers over the tie he was about to pick up. If he's serious about Hawaii being home, maybe it's time to lose the tie; to try to fit in.

He sighs and heads out the door, feeling its absence around his neck, feeling like his throat is too exposed. Steve is going to be smug.

o-O-o

The funeral of the Governor dominates the local news channel. There's a touching recap of her life and career which doesn't include that she was dirty and in bed with a criminal called Wo Fat.

Kono can't stand it. She switches the television off and heads to her bedroom to change into a bikini, throwing on a t-shirt and shorts for the car ride to the beach.

She stops as she catches sight of the two bowls on the side of the sink. Her ire softens briefly. Chin had fed her ice-cream, made her watch her favourite movie and generally spoiled her. He knew only too well what her situation was like although Chin had at least had the comfort of knowing that he'd been innocent.

Frustration sizzles along her veins; gets her to the car on a burst of adrenaline. She taps her fingers on the steering wheel.

Chin had finally caved and admitted his own position in HPD wasn't exactly helping to get her badge back or get Steve free of the charges. He had promised he was going to call Danny today. It feels right. It feels like the guys are finally remembering they're a team. Only she's side-lined because of IA.

Screw IA, she thinks. If they're coming after her no matter what the lack of evidence or what she says in defence of their accusations…if this is a witch hunt…well, she's done playing by the rules.

If Chin and Danny are going after Wo Fat, going to help Steve, no way is she letting them have all the fun. She guns the engine and grins.

o-O-o

Chin dresses carefully. The uniform is a necessity for the funeral. He despises the requirement to attend but if he can use it to their advantage…not that he's truly expecting to see Wo Fat. But he can't believe that Wo Fat won't send someone, a minion, along to bear witness to the murder Wo Fat executed and apparently has gotten away with.

He's sent Danny a text asking to meet later at the Five-0 headquarters. He hopes Danny will give him the benefit of the doubt; will think of Chin as he had done with Meka – that sometimes the evidence says one thing but your knowledge of the person says another. Not that he doesn't expect Danny to give him a hard time, because it's Danny and he'll need to yell, and maybe Chin deserves it a little. But Chin has every intention of standing up for himself too because he knows Danny knows why he did it. His phone beeps. It's Danny texting him, agreeing to meet. Chin looks at it pleased.

He smoothes a hand over his shoulder and adjusts his shirt so the creases lie correctly. He had once thought that he would never wear his uniform again. He's not sure he cares whether he'll ever wear it again once the funeral is done.

No.

That's a lie. He cares.

Losing his badge had hurt when IA had forced him out before and he knows it will hurt again when he resigns, just as he assumes it hurt Steve when he was arrested, Kono when she was suspended, Danny when he was let go.

But they're Five-0. They don't need badges to make that true.

They just need each other.

fin.


End file.
